It is said that tech startups are the born-global firms. That seems to be a fair statement as most of the technology developed by tech entrepreneurs has a worldwide potential. The services and solutions developed by the startup founders are designed to work on a global scale. With just a few adjustments, of course.
In order to reach that globality, tech startup founders want to derive significant competitive advantage from the use of resources and the sale of outputs in multiple countries. However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution for their internationalization models. Yet, there are some common denominators. A strong business network is one of the most important parts of that equitation.
Founders, if you wish to scale up your #tech business and become a successful entrepreneur, apply to the 4th edition of MIT Enterprise Forum CEE Startup Accelerator. You have time until July 5th by midnight. Click here
Relationship capital
Networking is one of the most critical behavioral learning strategies used by startups due to the scarcity of internal resources in a business to cope with triggers and develop solutions.
I’ve been working with tech innovation for more than 15 years now. When talking to the startup founders, I often hear that it is the relationship capital provided by MIT Enterprise Forum that is what the entrepreneurs value a lot. At the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE, we have built a robust communications platform connecting young high-tech companies with large enterprises in support of our growing entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The access to the elite MIT ecosystem, our network of corporate and institutional partners, market experts and a truly impressive range of other startup companies relevant with their business operations has positively impacted their further business growth.
Our program combines the resources of leading global and regional enterprises with the capabilities of Polish and international mentors and trainers to foster the growth of a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem supporting an expanding pipeline of CEE startups. We help startups improve their business networking skills and connect them with the decision makers on the business side who are willing to test-drive their solutions as well as real-life mentors and market experts.
MIT Enterprise Forum network
We are a member of the global MIT Enterprise Forum network, joining 10 US chapters and several international chapters, including those in Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, and Spain. Our headquarters are located Warsaw which serves Poland and fourteen other CEE countries including Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Serbia and Ukraine to name just a few. We encourage innovators from all of the CEE region to get in touch with our team. Together we can achieve more.
Networking
There is a number of initiatives that we, as the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE team, take to ensure the most fruitful outcome for our program alumni. In a nutshell, we organize one-on-one sessions with mentors and experts from Poland and abroad. Their goal is to help founders with fine-tuning their “go to market strategy” by connecting them with relevant business partners and their network. We host networking events where they can create more informal relations with our partners, investors, and various market experts. And the top startups in the accelerator are invited to participate in our annual Boston Bootcamp, featuring an intense agenda of activities in one of the leading US ecosystems for entrepreneurs. While in Boston, we make sure the networking on the US soil really happens. Not to mention the pitching session in front of American investors, which is a gem.
The journey continues even after the program ends
To support accelerated graduates in commercializing technology on the European or Asian market, MITEF CEE also establishes bilateral partnerships with platforms such as FinTech Connector, or corporations on foreign markets. Advantech is a fine example of such cooperation happening in Taiwan. It focuses on providing IoT solutions to various sectors, particularly for logistics and hospitals, also rail transportation and energy sector. By working with Advantech, startups get the chance to gain access to its international clients and take part in sales and marketing events which are known for setting a high market standard.
Startups that cooperate with MIT EF CEE can also gain technological support, as the organization works closely with the Dassault System, a company delivering comprehensive engineering and management software to which founders get free access.
To benefit from the potential created for CEE region startups, we also initiate joint activities with community partners such as Innovox – an accelerator from Romania which opens doors for MIT EF CEE alumni to potential business partners in Romania https://innovoxaudio.com/. Last but not least, our latest undertaking will be a pilot of events called “Berlin Warsaw Station” which goal is to foster business relations between both ecosystems, providing German and Polish entrepreneurs the platform to learn from each other and initiate cross-border, innovative projects.
Supportive network with entrepreneurial spirit
Mutual help is the foundation of our organization as several entrepreneurs with MIT background decided informally to help each other with their business plans. Such was the beginning of what was called by its attendants as “MIT Enterprise Forum”. The very same idea determines the actions of the accelerator and activities undertaken by MIT EF CEE alumni club. So far, we have supported over 330 founders, who now constitute an excellent network of top talents with entrepreneurial spirit. We strongly encourage our alumni to establish relationships between startups from various editions and different locations.
Founders, if you wish to scale up your business and become a successful entrepreneur, apply to the 4th edition of MIT Enterprise Forum CEE Startup Accelerator. You have time until July 5th by midnight. Click here
